


Prof. Song Min-young's Research Notes

by 93rdfragment



Series: Abnormals Alternate Universe [8]
Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Mutants, Gen, Science Fiction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-14
Updated: 2016-06-14
Packaged: 2018-07-14 23:41:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,884
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7196054
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/93rdfragment/pseuds/93rdfragment
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eighth of a series of articles to introduce some of the key events leading up to the world in Tadhana (wip for exordium 2016). There are no mentions of EXO members and ex-members in these articles.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Prof. Song Min-young's Research Notes

**Author's Note:**

> I rated this mature because of the death of abnormals. There are some that might be considered graphic. Also, a fair warning for scientific terms. Let me know in the comments if you need any clarifications.

Prof. Song Min-young's Notes  
Assistant Researcher, Origin Research Department  
Research Institute of Abnormals

  


2019 May 5 (00:13 p.m.)  
The research on DNA mutation is still unsuccessful. All subjects seem to exhibit the same DNA structure as humans. (No one wants to acknowledge this.) Although with alterations to sections of the DNA that coincide with the abnormal's powers.

 

2019 October 30 (06:49 a.m.)  
Ab23, previously known as Go Jae-yong, has been found dead. Despite the sedatives injected in him, he has managed to poison himself at night.

(13:08 p.m.)  
It seems that his body developed a new poison that it wasn't resistant to. His internal organs have been destroyed along with parts of his skeletal system. The poison is unknown.

 

2019 October 31 (12:00 p.m.)  
Ab23's body has been transferred to the Preservation Ward. (Still no funeral rites or services done for dead abnormals. Notification to the family signed by Director Jang has been sent.)

(21:06 p.m.)  
The poison seems to be a neurotoxin similar to delta atracotoxin found in the Atrax robustus, or the Sydney funnel-web spider. Prof. Kwon's team is handling the investigation. How can an abnormal produce such toxins in their body?

 

2020 January 1 (00:01 a.m.)  
It’s a minute past midnight. Officially, there have been 2 subject deaths in 2019. This leaves us with only 8 subjects in our labs. The occurrence of abnormals throughout the years doesn’t seem to be significant in numbers. My personal suspicion of the large number of abnormals detained in the first 2 or 3 years was the rounding up of those whose powers have manifested years ago.

 

2020 February 19 (08:36 a.m.)  
Prof. Im has told us to brainstorm for possible causes of the existence of abnormals. He's ordered us to stay in the meeting room until we can give him at least 5 plausible causes. (We might be here for a week. Hyebin-ah is secretly throwing a tantrum.)

 

2020 February 21 (00:23 a.m.)  
I found an article by Prof. Susan Lindquist on prions. There might be some valuable information I can find on it.

 

2020 February 22 (22:10 p.m.)  
I have exhausted all available studies and articles on prions and any that reference them. The mutation and evolutionary possibility that Prof. Lindquist hypothesized and proven in yeast experiments may be the key to abnormals. Prions are significantly smaller and more of a mystery in the field that we have failed to add it in our speculations before. I am about to write the hypothesis for Prof. Im's review.

 

2020 February 24 (10:52 a.m.)  
Prof. Im has turned down my hypothesis. He has insisted that there isn't enough evidence to support it. Comparing single-celled yeast to multi-celled abnormals is too huge a leap. The other professors seem to have heard of my hypothesis as well and agree with Prof. Im. They doubt that the genetic changes could actually come from prions. (I appreciate Hyebin's comforting words. This must be the same feeling Prof. Lindquist felt when her colleagues rejected her ideas and proposals.)

 

2020 March 9 (09:18 a.m.)  
Our team is back on investigating the alterations on the DNA of several subjects. The cause of the diverse alterations is still unapparent.

 

2020 March 11 (15:15 p.m.)  
Ab32, previously known as Kim A-reum, has died. During training in the ITD, she collapsed after a test to direct her powers into an attack. Her power was creating sharp bone-like structures from her back. It seems that her ribs became weapons as well. However, they punctured her lungs and heart. (There's speculation that she did it to herself willingly.)

Ab35, previously known as Jung Han-jae, is inconsolable and has been transferred to Isolation Unit A.

 

2020 March 12 (09:00 a.m.)  
Ab32's body has been transferred to the Preservation Ward. (No funeral rites or services. Notification to the family signed by Lieutenant General Lee has been sent.)

There is a faint floral scent that permeates throughout the building. Ab35's power seems to have magnified. (Hyebin-ah says that it's the smell of anemone. It seems anemones mean 'forsaken' or mourning the death of a loved one.)

 

2020 May 16 (10:00 a.m.)  
No similarities between the alterations of the DNA can be found. Several tests have shown no results. (Prof. Im has become frustrated along with the rest of our team.)

 

2020 May 18 (07:36 a.m.)  
Prof. Im has lent our team to the others for the time being. I’ve been assigned to help Prof. Lee who is doing experiments on the sympathetic nervous system of the subjects. The subjects have all displayed a more advanced sympathetic nervous system with more active neurons and satellite glial cells.

 

2020 June 6 (17:27 p.m.)  
It’s fascinating to see just how advanced an abnormal’s SNS is. Prof. Lee’s team, including myself, watched how quick their response is to danger during experiments at PoEx and trainings at ITD. (Hyebin-ah is complaining how ‘cool’ our investigation is compared to hers in Prof. Kwon’s team. They’re looking into brain activity.)

 

2020 August 20 (10:15 a.m.)  
Ab35, previously known as Jung Han-jae, has died. While we were testing the extent of his powers and his response time at PoEx, his body secreted the scent of aconite - monkshood or wolfsbane in common terms. It had no effect in the first 5 minutes. After the 5 minute mark however, he was sweating and breathing erratically. He collapsed in the next 30 seconds before anyone could process what was happening.

(12:23 p.m.)  
Taeil-ssi, from Prof. Lee’s team, has just informed me that Ab35’s body produced aconitine, not just the scent of aconite. There was a large amount of the deadly toxin flowing in his bloodstream which killed him instantly.

 

2020 August 21 (06:00 a.m.)  
Ab35’s body has been transferred to the Preservation Ward. (No funeral rites or services for the sweet abnormal, both in temper and in scent. Notification to the family signed by Director Choi has been sent.)

The smell of aconite lingers in the Preservation Ward.

 

2020 August 31 (08:00 a.m.)  
Prof. Im called us back into his team. He informed us his work outside of RIA is done. It seems he had been called for input on a different genetics research in Sungkyungkwan University. (Hyebin-ah and I are wondering when we would get called by our alma mater for help too.)

 

2020 September 1 (20:51 p.m.)  
Our team has just finished discussing which of the approved hypotheses we will pursue now. It seems that, due to Prof. Lee’s findings on the SNS, we will be conducting research on the genes promoting neural growth. We’re starting with the SLITRK family.

 

2020 November 17 (01:09 a.m.)  
Ab20, previously known as Park Ji-min, has died. She was taken to the DMZ after a sufficient evaluation of her moderate control over her power - combustion of air particles surrounding herself within an 8 ft radius - and above average skills in combat. The cause of her death is shrapnel cutting through her unprotected throat. She had tried to stop a bullet from going through her but it resulted in flying shrapnel.

(04:12 a.m.)  
Ab20’s body has been transferred to the Preservation Ward. (No funeral rites or services for the fallen unofficial soldier. Notification to the family signed by Lieutenant General Lee has been sent.)

 

2020 December 2 (09:54 a.m.)  
Our team has concluded that there is nothing in the SLITRK family that would indicate an appearance of powers in abnormals. There is room for further research in the future. But, at this moment, none can be seen. The others are eager to explore other families.

 

2021 January 1 (00:02 a.m.)  
It’s 2 minutes past midnight. Officially, there have been 3 subject deaths in 2020. This leaves us with only 7 subjects in our labs. If we cannot prevent these deaths, we will soon be devoid of subjects to study.

 

2021 January 1 (03:21 a.m.)  
Ab37, previously known as Choi Yoon-a, and Ab38, previously known as Choi Yoon-jung, have both killed themselves. The twins were found completely dehydrated in their own rooms. Their powers involved controlling liquids. The extracted fluids from their bodies were seen stuck to the wall that divided their rooms. (Hyebin-ah says it’s like a scene from a tragic movie. I think it’s like the beginning of a horror movie. Hyebin-ah laughed at me for crawling into her bed for the rest of the morning.)

 

2021 January 2 (08:31 a.m.)  
Ab37’s and Ab38’s bodies have been transferred to the Preservation Ward. (No funeral rites or services. Notification to the family signed by Director Jang and Director Choi has been sent.)

 

2021 March 15 (00:13 a.m.)  
Ab30, previously known as Ahn Kwang-hee, has died. He was taken to the DMZ due to his military background. However, he had tried to escape while on the field. Those who pursued him were poisoned by the scorpion tail protruding from his back. He was eventually deemed too volatile and was gunned down. His victims have been treated straightaway.

(02:38 a.m.)  
Ab30’s body has been transferred to the Preservation Ward. (No funeral rites or services. Soldiers from ITD are ranting over the ordeal. Notification to the family signed by Lieutenant General Lee has been sent.)

 

2021 April 16 (08:34 a.m.)  
Prof. Jeon has just talked to me. She seems keen on my hypothesis on prions and wants to explore the idea. I tried to tell her how it's already been rejected a year ago but she's insisting. She says she'll take me under her wing and we can do experiments together. I don't know how she'll be able to convince the other head researchers especially since she's new. I doubt Prof. Im would transfer me to her team. (Hyebin-ah is throwing another tantrum. It seems she doesn't want me to leave her alone in a team full of men.)

 

2021 April 29 (07:07 a.m.)  
Prof. Jeon did it. She managed to convince Director Jang and the other head researchers to pursue my hypothesis. However, it seems it will only be me and Hyebin in her team. But she seems to be ecstatic despite the very obvious drawback. (Hyebin-ah and I agree that this is discrimination. Prof. Jeon says it doesn’t matter because we’ve got more brain power than all the men combined.)

 

2021 June 12 (10:11 a.m.)  
Ab41, previously known as Lee Kyu-min, has killed himself. He hardened all of his blood into thin spikes that protruded from his body. There’s nothing left of his body. Even his blood has disappeared. After killing him, his blood liquidated and rapidly evaporated. ExLab 15 is under quarantine until further notice. (No funeral rites or services. Notification to the family signed by Director Choi has been sent.)

Ab39, previously known as Jung Dong-chul, has gone into depression. He has been releasing weak chirrups as if calling for Ab41.

 

2021 June 28 (06:39 a.m.)  
ExLab 15 has been cleared. There are no traces of Ab41. (Hyebin-ah says he probably wanted to be free.)

 

2021 July 19 (23:09 p.m.)  
Our team has tested all of the subjects with the protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA) technology, the enhanced quaking-induced protein conversion (eQulC), and other prion misfolding detection methods several times. No results have yielded. All the blood samples show no misfolded prion. (Hyebin-ah is angry everyday with all the egotistic men looking down on us. Yumi-ssi gives her a piece of chocolate to calm her down. Hyebin-ah says she’s the best head researcher each time.)

 

2021 July 25 (07:01 a.m.)  
Our team is discussing right now. Yumi-ssi says that if conventional thinking isn’t getting us anywhere then we have to think outside the box. She says that’s how I developed my idea. We decided to read through all prion articles again to see if we’ll get some sort of moment of realization.

 

2021 July 29 (15:51 p.m.)  
Hyebin has had a breakthrough. The methods we’ve been using are specific to recognizing prion misfolding that leads to neurodegenerative diseases. Our subjects don’t exhibit any signs of having those diseases. Although the prion protein scrapie form (PrPSc) is believed to be the general misfolded form of infectious PrP, we might be dealing with another form altogether.

Yumi-ssi suggested we should look into the prion protein (PRNP) gene first to see if there has been a mutation. We’ll begin testing tomorrow.

 

2021 August 18 (12:07 p.m.)  
Ab39, previously known as Jung Dong-chul, has died. The exact reason behind his death is still unknown. It might have been his depression. It might have been stress. But he had collapsed during instillation lessons at ITD.

(21:12 p.m.)  
Ab39’s body has been transferred to the Preservation Ward. (No funeral rites or services. Notification to the family signed by Lieutenant General Lee has been sent.)

 

2021 October 5 (16:34 p.m.)  
A breakthrough! We’ve finally locked down the PRNP gene mutation in abnormals. Through different trials and observations of their DNA’s chromosome 20 at position 13, we can conclude that there has been the exact same mutation in all subjects. There’s still insufficient evidence to connect this mutation to the development of their powers but we’re hopeful. (Yumi-ssi is making us stay in her apartment at the Residence Building to celebrate with delicious food and alcohol.)

 

2021 October 7 (05:30 a.m.)  
Today, we will begin testing on the mutated PRNP gene. We need to learn what this mutation is doing to the gene and the prions it produces.

 

2021 December 31 (22:02 p.m.)  
Our team’s tests has yielded no results so far. Yumi-ssi is unwilling to give up and so are we. I can feel we’re on the brink of discovering something amazing. (Yumi-ssi has invited us to her apartment again to celebrate the new year with her.)

 

2022 January 1 (00:06 a.m.)  
It’s 6 minutes past midnight. Officially, there have been 5 subject deaths in 2021. This leaves us with only 5 subjects in our labs. We’ve discussed throughout the months about effective preventive measures we’ve learned from the deaths over the past years. I’m hoping they’ll help when they’re implemented. (Hyebin-ah is complaining about my compulsive behavior of jotting down notes and not enjoying with her and Yumi-unnie.)

 

2022 February 28 (23:48 p.m.)  
We did it! We’ve discovered the new form of PrP that the mutated PRNP gene creates. We’ve decided to name it prion-omega or PrPO. (Another celebration in Yumi-unnie’s apartment is in order.)

 

2022 March 2 (7:03 a.m.)  
Our team will now begin to experiment on PrPO. We’re hoping to identify its characteristics, behaviors, and relationship with other prions and proteins. (Our colleagues are still apprehensive over the impact of such small proteins in creating powers. Hyebin-ah is sticking her middle finger at them behind their backs.)

 

2022 May 26 (14:21 p.m.)  
So far, it seems that PrPO behaves like PrPSc when it comes to affecting other prions. They have rapid propagation and infection. However, unlike its disease-causing counterpart, PrPO also affects other proteins. PrPO misfolds its target proteins. There seems to be no mechanism in how it chooses its target. But it produces mutational variations of the protein and other similar proteins that it encounters. (I know we’re on to something here.)

 

2022 June 13 (20:22 p.m.)  
We’ve finally been able to link our PrPO discovery to the powers of abnormals. Most of the target proteins of PrPO have turned out to be proteins which give abnormals biological enhancements resulting in their powers. Yumi-unnie is proposing that PrPO might actually be the source of the powers. However, there is still a lot of erratic behavior of PrPO that we haven’t been able to account for. The bet-hedging behavior of prions that Prof. Lindquist has observed seems to fit quite well with PrPO.

The other teams are now starting to acknowledge the significance of our study and discovery of PrPO. Some of the other research assistants have begun discussions with us. (Hyebin-ah is grumbling so Yumi-unnie and I consoled her.)

 

2022 June 25 (09:49 a.m.)  
After much deliberation over the past weeks, all teams in OriDep are now focused on PrPO. Prof. Lee’s team will study PrPO and its relation to the SNS discoveries that they’ve made. Prof. Im’s team will study PrPO and its relation to epigenetic tags and mutations in the abnormal’s DNA. Prof. Kwon’s team will study PrPO and its relation to heat shock proteins that might be aiding in its propagation and effects. Our team will still focus on PrPO behavior and other effects.

OriDep is now looking into PrPO as the origin of abnormals and their powers. (Hyebin-ah and I crashed at Yumi-unnie’s apartment unannounced. We’re celebrating our huge achievements as a three woman team left to their own devices. We’ll talk about intellectual property rights after some fun.)


End file.
